Bed of Roses
by ancarett
Summary: It's getting to be familiar for Lois to wake up in a hospital. But five dozen roses tells her this time's different. missing scene for "Pandora"


It was the sweet smell that roused her from a deep and surprisingly dreamless sleep. A rich, floral scent that was unmistakable to any woman who once had a boyfriend with an extravagant turn. Like Oliver Queen, say.

Lois opened her eyes and once she'd adjusted to the bright, white walls and dim lighting of what was clearly another hospital. A hospital. Again? Lois groaned inwardly and wondered if it was her fourth or fifth time in a hospital this year? She couldn't quite remember. That would worry her more if she wasn't still a bit woozy. Summoning all of her mental energy, Lois slowly focused her vision and turned her head minutely toward the left where she saw the source of the smell: a vase overflowing with roses.

Deep, red blossoms on long stems filled a glistening glass vase quite out of place on utilitarian metal nightstand. There has to be a couple dozen blooms crammed into the tall container, Lois thought bemusedly.

She inhaled deeply, pulling in the scent with an appreciative sigh.

"Lois?"

Lois slowly rolled her head toward the right, to see another vase full of red roses and the familiar face of her cousin.

"Chloe?"

The petite blonde smiled briefly as she leaned forward over the railing of Lois's hospital bed out of the standard-issue chair where she'd obviously been napping to judge from her sleepy expression and relaxed stance. "Hey there, cuz."

Lois let her eyes wander to the roses and back again. "I had the weirdest dreams, Chlo. But nothing to tell me why I'm here."

Chloe suppressed a smirk, which piqued Lois' interest. "What's the last thing you remember, Lois?" The question seemed fraught with meaning and Lois let her eyes half-close as she focused her thoughts.

It was hard to piece anything together but she was relieved to realize that when her mind wandered, she wasn't immediately drawn into those red-hued visions despite the occasionally enticing aspects. "Well," Lois said, "the last thing I remember, I was in the copy room with Clark when I grabbed him and . . . ."

Her mouth running a few moments ahead of her brain, Lois stopped herself just before spilling all the details to Chloe. But her wide eyes must have given something away because her cousin was grinning in what seemed to be amused relief.

"You kissed him, didn't you?"

Lois pushed herself up on one elbow, surprised at how wobbly she felt from such a little effort. "How do you know?"

Chloe smiled guilelessly. "I have my ways!" At Lois' glare, she elaborated, "Okay, Clark told us. Oliver and me, I mean."

"Really?" Lois made the word sound as if it was a threat directed at Clark. Which it probably was.

Chloe's expression sobered. "He had to, Lois. You fell unconscious and began having seizures."

"Really?" This time, the word was infused with a bit of shock and horror.

Chloe nodded, biting her lip as she glanced toward the open door of the room, then looked back to see her cousin's expression.

"It's okay, Lois. The doctors here were able to treat you. Turns out the problem is pretty simple in the end. You're hypoglycemic!" Chloe smiled slightly. "I told you all that skipping breakfast wasn't good for you."

Lois glared at the other woman before allowing herself to fall back against the stiff hospital mattress.

"Huh," Lois finally managed. She glanced around the room but excepting for an empty bed, drawn blinds and closed door, presumably leading to a washroom, the place was pretty spartan. The lack of light filtering through the blinds told her that it was night time, but that covered a lot of ground. A steady buzz of noise outside suggested they weren't too far from the nurse's station but there was no convenient clock visible in the hallway to let her know what time it was.

"So, what," Lois asked hesitantly, "I've been here a couple of hours?"

Chloe's laugh sounded a little forced. "More like twenty-four plus. You let yourself get pretty run down there, Lois. Oliver called in a bunch of specialists to consult before they finally got you stabilized."

"Huh," Lois said, as she looked around the stark hospital room with a bit more gratitude. "And I suppose these are courtesy of Oliver, too?" she asked, gesturing at the vases of flowers.

Her cousin let one eyebrow arch to her hairline. "You're barking up the wrong tree with that theory, Lois. Clark brought you those roses. He's hardly let you out of his sight, too, since we got you settled in the hospital."

Lois harrumphed, not knowing whether to be pleased or annoyed at that statement. "Really? Then where is he?"

As if her words summoned him, Clark appeared at the doorway. His worried expression melted away as he saw her sitting up against the white bedsheets. Faster than she could process, he was leaning over the side of her bed, cradling her hand as if she were the most precious thing in the universe, his eyes intent upon her face.

"Lois," he said, and that was all the sound that either of them made for a few moments. Lois' eyes flashed back and forth under a quizzical brow, taking in his delighted expression. Clark's relieved adoration seemed a bit over the top for-.

"Wait," Lois said, turning to look at Chloe. "Hypoglycemia? Are you sure that's all it was? You're not holding out some bad news from me, are you?"

Chloe nodded firmly. "Dr. Hamilton said you would be fine to release in the morning."

Lois scrambled up in the bed at this, tugging her hand out of Clark's careful grip. "Tomorrow? Why not now? I hate hospitals and, if I'm fine, then, why not?"

Clark interrupted, drawing her attention back to him. "The doctors wanted to wait until you were conscious and all systems go before they let you loose on Metropolis, Lois. You gave everyone a real scare."

Lois looked at her fellow reporter and realized he was still wearing the same white dress shirt from the previous day. With cuffs rolled up and collar askew, his clothes looked a little worse for wear as he did, himself. She could also see a distinct shading of stubble running along the planes of his face.

With a hesitant hand, she reached out to touch the side of his face. A flicker of something danced at the edge of her consciousness, but then she was absorbed in the warm, rough texture of Clark's unshaven skin and the bright, searching look in his eyes.

"Ah, look," Chloe said with forced jollity, "I don't want to break up the party but I've been on the go a long time. I'm going to head out but I'll be here in the morning to spring you, Lois?"

Lois' fingers dropped from Clark's cheek at her cousin's words. "Aw, come on, Chloe! Can't I go now?"

Clark reached out and held her hand firmly. "The doctors want to make sure you're not going to have a relapse, Lois. No skipping out early."

She tossed her head disdainfully. "Come on, Smallville. Hypoglycemia isn't a death sentence. I just need to get some extra sugar in my diet. Maybe if you'd stop stealing my donuts. . . ."

Clark rolled his eyes at this while Chloe made her way to the door. "Look, I'd love to stay and shoot the breeze with you two, but I am beat. I'll bring a change of clothes for you when I come by tomorrow, okay, Lois?"

The blonde was out the door before Lois could say yes or no. With a sigh, she settled back on the bed and eyed Clark thoughtfully. "I don't suppose," she began but before she could ask Clark to help sneak her out, her partner was shaking his head in disapproval.

"Don't even go there, Lois," Clark warned. "You're becoming a legend at Metropolis General. No sneaking out until the doctor says you're cleared. They're keeping an eye on you. I'm keeping an eye on you."

Lois rolled her eyes and Clark leaned in closely. Lois found herself mesmerized by the tight focus of his regard "We were worried: Chloe, Oliver, me. I know it was a few weeks ago, but there was that bad bump to your head you took in the monorail crash. And your fall the other day and all that. I didn't know what was going on when you went into a seizure."

His eyes searched back and forth across her face. "We almost lost you, Lois."

She blew a little dismissive sigh at that, but let her head fall back against the pillow for a moment. She wouldn't admit it, but she did feel a bit weak and unusually tired. As she lay there, letting her eyes close for a moment, the rich scent of the roses rose around her.

Her eyes snapped open, focusing directly on Clark. "Chloe says you got me these." With Clark still holding her left hand, not that she was exactly objecting!, and an IV uncomfortably lodged in the back of her right, Lois could only gesture toward the vases.

Clark smiled shyly. "I did."

Lois could see Clark's uncertainty. "They're nice. Uh, unexpected!" When his smile began to dim, Lois rushed to elaborate. "I mean, they're gorgeous, I just wasn't expecting to wake up in a hospital, let alone surrounded by a florist shop."

That still didn't sound right. Lois glanced at the flowers to her left and right and searched for some words to explain what she felt, failing miserably. Although she remembered marching across the copy room to plant a kiss on the man now sitting beside her, she couldn't really recall much after that. Had it been a complete embarrassment? She sure hoped not but it was killing her not to really know where she stood.

Exasperated with her uncharacteristic waffling, Lois let her eyes turn to the darkened window just in case she was going to look like the world's greatest fool. "They're beautiful. Thank you, Clark."

Clark's "You're welcome" was low and heartfelt.

Lois shivered slightly at the tone. Instantly, Clark was leaning over her, laying a hand lightly on her forehead. "Are you cold?" he asked. "Should I call a nurse?"

Lois closed her eyes and offered up a silent, heartfelt thanks that the hospital didn't seem to have a heart monitor attached to her because, at this point?, she was pretty sure that alarms would be blaring as her heart thudded in reaction to Clark's closeness. His warm familiar scent overrode the roses' perfume and she could feel herself just wanting to lean in close and- focus!

Lois shook her head emphatically but kept her eyes closed to avoid any reaction that might betray her. "No! She'd probably want to give me an enema or something else equally horrible. Thanks but no thanks, Smallville."

With an ostentatious yawn, she relaxed back into the stiff, uncomfortable bedding. "I should probably get some sleep, then, if I'm stuck here for the duration," Lois announced.

Opening one eye, she regarded Clark speculatively. "Why don't you head off home to the farm and get some rest, yourself. Tomorrow ought to be a busy day if we have a day and a half to make up at work. The news doesn't report itself, you know!"

Clark's smile turned knowing. "Oh, I'm not leaving, Lois. If I did, you'd be out that door as soon as my back was turned."

Lois began to object but Clark raised an eyebrow so high that she was forced to laugh. "Okay. You're right. But wouldn't you?"

He let go of her hand at this, but only to lean his forearms on his knees. His body language was relaxed but firm and Lois could already tell this was one of those moments when Clark wasn't backing down.

His words just confirmed her suspicions. "Maybe, Lois. But, no, tonight you stay here. I want to be sure you're getting better. So just lay back and relax, okay? After Chloe brings you your clothes tomorrow, I'll head home to wash up and change. I'll be back in time to take you to work since your car's still parked there, anyway."

A bit uncomfortable at his intent regard, Lois nodded her assent. She was still pretty groggy, after all, and it probably wasn't worth pissing off both Chloe and Clark to sneak out to wherever she might end up. Considering she shared her apartment with one of them and her office with the other, she wouldn't even have a decent place to hole up if she did manage to sneak out.

"You're sure I'm getting sprung tomorrow," Lois asked, with a stern glare.

"Positive, Lois." Clark relaxed and his smile was nearly infectious.

"Okay, then," Lois said. "But just this once. Don't get used to it."

"I won't," Clark promised.

"Good," Lois pronounced as she settled herself into the bed as best she could. A small frown wrinkled her face as she heard the plastic mattress cover crinkled beneath the sheet. This was no bed of roses. But then the perfume of her flowers wafted under her nose and the frown faded instantly.

With her eyes still closed, she smiled. "And tomorrow, Clark?" Lois said with an expectant lift at the end of her words.

"What, Lois?" he responded lightly.

"You buy me coffee. And a donut."

"Yes, ma'am." His amusement was evident in the tone of his prompt rejoinder but Lois was content to let him have his moment. She'd have her donut, after all, and, with the promise of the roses, maybe something more.


End file.
